Often contemplated among seafood lovers is the fresh, as opposed to farm-raised, dilemma. Is there a right answer? Choosing one might not be as easy as you think. Focusing on what it entails to put the catch of the day on the serving platter, it turns out, is a conversation with issues for both sides of this seafood quandary. Aquafarms, or fish farms, are producing large-scale amounts of finned favorites in order to meet consumer demands for seafood. Without addressing one of the largest, perhaps eeriest concerns over aquaculture – the genetically modified fish (salmon to be exact), there are other… read more

To showcase what can be done for local food production in an urban setting anywhere in the city, Kate Hofman and Tom Webster built a combination vertical farm and aquaponics system into an upcycled shipping container, called the GrowUp Box. “We want to show how fresh food can be grown anywhere in the city in a way that is ecologically sustainable and commercially scalable. For us, aquaponics is the technology that can make that vision a reality – by producing fresh fish and vegetables in a recirculating farming system.” – GrowUp Box With the help of some crowdfunding on Kickstarter,… read more

When trying to produce a viable and sustainable biofuel, one that can be produced from renewable resources and used in conventional combustion engines, one of the big hangups is the need to use large tracts of land to grow the feedstock. But technologies such as algae biofuel are promising more efficient land use in biofuel production, and it turns out that another great source for biofuel feedstock can be found in the ocean, in the form of the sea squirt. Researchers at the University of Bergen (UiB) and Uni Research have identified a specific kind of tunicate, ascidiacea, as great… read more

Research projects like the Coral Triangle Initiative are working to safeguard water zones. Studies like these are international efforts to protect coral reef areas. The intention is to defend not only the reef ecosystems, but also the local fisheries and individuals that live in these regions. They also further examine associations between whether or not indigenous opportunities, like seaweed farming, are viable commodities for local people. One objective of researchers in a mission called Hugging the Coast, which was in the same vein as the Coral Triangle Initiative, was looking at available connections between these commercial areas and to seek sustainable,… read more

Geothermal energy has been used as a power source for thousands of years. Using the earth’s internal heat as energy provides an efficient and reliable source. In cold months, air in the ground is warmer than the air outside so it can be pumped into areas that need heated up. In warmer months, indoor air can be forced back into the earth’s interior to cool down spaces. It is a low impact form of energy because it does not cause as much disruption to the environment as other means of non-renewable energy, like those that require excessive drilling. It may be… read more